Ian
priscilla 1Upland Moa
March 9th 2011 03:23
The moa were flightless birds endemic to New Zealand. The two largest species reached about 3.7 m (12 ft) in height with neck outstretched, and weighed about 230 kg (510 lb).
Moa are members of the order Struthioniformes (or ratites). The eleven species of moa are the only wingless birds, lacking even the vestigial wings which all other ratites have. They were the dominant herbivores in New Zealand forest, shrubland and subalpine ecosystems for thousands of years, and until the arrival of the Māori were hunted only by the Haast's Eagle. It is generally considered that most, if not all, species of Moa died out by Maori hunting and habitat decline before European discovery and settlement.
The Upland Moa was the last moa species to become extinct, vanishing around 1500; possibly, some isolated populations managed to persist until about the early 19th century.
Preserved moa foot, Natural History Museum
*This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article for Moa.
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